HANOI (UCAN): Pope Francis named 58-year-old Bishop Joseph Vu Van Thien of Hai Phong, to lead the Archdiocese of Hanoi on November 17.

Archbishop Joseph Nguyen Chi Linh, the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Vietnam, said in a November 18 announcement that Archbishop-elect Thien would succeed 80-year-old Peter Cardinal Nguyen Van Nhon, whose resignation has been accepted by the pope. He was also named apostolic administrator of Hai Phong.